Overview: Portfolio Analyzer OLAP Extensions

The Portfolio Analyzer OLAP Extensions Solution Starter is an introduction to the architecture and processes used to build and extend the Portfolio Analyzer online analytical processing (OLAP) cube in Microsoft® Office Project Server 2003. The solution starter includes three working samples that show how to extend the cube by adding data such as a new dimension. You can use data from Project Server or from external sources such as Microsoft® Windows® SharePoint™ Services.

Note  This solution starter includes a revision of the Microsoft Project 2002 SDK article "Extending OLAP Cube Services" and adds new OLAP extension scenarios and implementations for Project Server.

Download   The Microsoft Office Project Server 2003: Portfolio Analyzer OLAP Extensions Solution Starter (pj11OlapExtensions.exe) includes the HTML Help file and source code for the three OLAP extensions for Project Server 2003. This file is available from the Microsoft Download Center.

Microsoft Office Project Server 2003 captures a wealth of information that can provide insight into a business. Users can make better business decisions with proper analysis and reports of project data. The Portfolio Analyzer feature in Project Server helps users perform complex analyses of project data by generating OLAP cubes with Microsoft® SQL Server™ Analysis Services. When Project Server is first deployed, Portfolio Analyzer includes a default set of views and settings for generating the OLAP cubes.

Users have access to Portfolio Analyzer views of resource and assignment information through Project Web Access. After projects are published, project managers and administrators can generate OLAP cubes of time-phased project data, and users can interact with the chart views to help gain insight into the health of a project portfolio.

This solution starter shows how to build three custom OLAP extensions for Portfolio Analyzer on Project Server 2003. Project managers can adapt these samples to customize Portfolio Analyzer and create reports that suit the needs of their organizations.

The solution starter samples include the following:

• Adding a Pay Period Dimension   Add a new dimension to the cube from existing data in the Project Server views and manually create the cube using SQL Server Analysis Manager.
• Extending Task Issues and Risks   Combine Project Server data with external data from Windows SharePoint Services, programmatically extend the cube, and create new views containing risks and issues information.
• Extending Task Earned Value   Add new task information from Project Server data to the cube and create new views to include task earned value and enterprise task outline codes.

The sample Extending Task Issues and Risks helps project managers make the most use out of the Windows Sharepoint Services integrated risk- and issues- tracking feature. Team members can continue to use the feature to enter risk probability, cost to mitigation, and other data. Project managers can create customized interactive charts and tables to help identify potentially risky projects in order to better manage them.

The sample Extending Task Earned Value enables project managers to easily visualize and measure the budget and schedule status of tasks in one or more projects. Managers can use enterprise task outline codes to graph the status of an entire portfolio of projects based on location, project phase, group, or other category, and quickly see and report the problems and successes.

The main sections of the Portfolio Analyzer OLAP Extensions Solution Starter include the following topics:

• Concepts and Architecture explains the architecture and processes used to build a Portfolio Analyzer OLAP cube in Project Server and how to extend the cube building process.
• Implementations includes a discussion of how to develop, install, and test the three solution starter samples.
• Using the Portfolio Analyzer OLAP Extensions describes how to create new views and customize Portfolio Analyzer to create reports that suit the needs of your organization.
• References includes a summary of external sites with more information, a list of components in the samples, and a discussion of cube security.

This solution starter assumes you are familiar with SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Manager, SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services, Decision Support Objects (DSO), the Project Server database, Project Web Access administration, and Microsoft Visual Basic® 6.0.

You can learn more about the Project Server database from the file PJSVRDB.HTM in the directory [Program Files]\Microsoft Office Project Server 2003\HELP\1033 on the server where Project Server is installed.

For detailed guides to installing, configuring, and administering Project Server with SQL Server, Analysis Services, and Windows SharePoint Services, see the Project Server Technical Library.

Microsoft® Office Online has more information on task earned value in the article Applying earned value analysis to your project.

MSDN has more information on the following related products and technologies:

• SQL Server 2000
• Installing Analysis Services
• Data Warehousing and OLAP
• Decision Support Objects